Shaun Gale

(Assistant Manager) Born 1969

Shaun started as a trainee at Portsmouth in 1988 and stayed six years before signing for Barnet in July 1994. With the then Division Three side he started 125 times in three seasons and then completed a £10,000 move to Exeter in 1997, where he again played over 100 games in three seasons.

Joining the Hawks in August 2000, he made 118 appearances in his first three seasons, however serious repercussions from a broken arm sustained during a friendly in August 2003 kept Shaun off the pitch for the whole of season 03/04, eventually forcing his retirement from playing.

In February 2004 he took up the position as then manager David Leworthy’s right hand man, and remained in the assistant manager role under Ian Baird. Baird’s departure in October 2007 left the path clear for Shaun to assume full control of the side, something he said at the time was the fulfilment of a personal ambition.

Gale’s successes as manager included two significant FA Cup runs, both gaining national exposure and television coverage, as well as taking the side to the quarter finals of the FA Trophy.

After a disastrous run of results in the 2011/12 season, Gale agreed to stand down as manager with six games remaining in the hope the Hawks could avoid relegation. Off the pitch he remained with the club in his other position as Community Manager and was reinstated in his old role as assistant manager by Lee Bradbury in October 2012.